(To tour 16 aspects
describing Yoga Meditation practice, click Next
in the line above, or click on one of the words or phrases
above.)

16 page summary: In the 16 pages linked in
the sentence above,
Yoga Meditation is described in practical terms, and simple language. In the science of
meditation, the profound is often cloaked behind the simplest words. The explanations in the links should provide a greater sense of the
depth of these practices.

Yoga
Sutras:
Yogash chitta vritti nirodhah. (1.2)
Tada drashtuh svarupe avasthanam. (1.3)
Yoga is the mastery of the activities of the mind-field.
Then the seer rests in its true nature.

Yoga Sutras: Yoga is one of
the six schools of
Indian philosophy and deals with the practical methods of attaining direct
experience of the center of consciousness. Yoga is succinctly described in
the Yoga
Sutras in 196 pithy phrases or
sutras (literally, threads). The gist of the Yoga
Sutras is contained in the first few sutras (1.1-1.4). (For book recommendations
on the Yoga Sutras, click here)

Yoga Meditation is the art and
science of systematically observing, accepting, understanding,
and training each of the levels of our being, such that we may
coordinate and integrate those aspects of ourselves, and dwell
in the direct experience of the center of consciousness. The
links above are to a 16-page description of
Yoga Meditation, which explains the process in practical terms,
and simple language.

Yoga Meditation is not actually
a separate aspect of Yoga, due to the fact that Yoga is
meditation. However, the phrase Yoga Meditation is being used
here to discriminate between Yoga Meditation and the now popular
belief that Yoga is about physical postures. Yoga or Yoga
Meditation is a complete process unto itself, only a small,
though useful part of which relates to the physical body. (See
the article Modern Yoga versus
Traditional
Yoga)

In the Yoga Meditation of the Himalayan
tradition, one systematically works with senses, body,
breath, the various levels of mind, and then goes beyond, to the
center of consciousness. The science of Yoga Meditation as
taught by the Himalayan sages is already a whole, complete
science that has been torn into smaller pieces over time.
Individual parts have sometimes (unfortunately) been cut out
from the whole of Yoga Meditation, given separate names, and
then taught as unique systems of meditation. The
perspective of Yoga Meditation on the SwamiJ.com site is that it
is not a pasting together of disparate Yogas, but an already
unified whole that we might call Yoga Meditation, or simply
Yoga.

Yoga Meditation of the
Himalayan tradition is holistic in that it not only deals
systematically with all levels, but also involves a broad range
of practices, including meditation, contemplation, prayer, and
mantra, as well as the preparatory practices leading up to
these. Yoga Meditation also explores all of the levels of
reality and self-construction, including the gross (vaishvanara),
subtle (taijasa), causal (prajna), and the absolute (turiya), as
reflected in OM Mantra. Finally, Yoga
Meditation leads one to the direct experience of the absolute,
pure, eternal center of consciousness.

The
root meaning of Yoga Meditation lies in the meaning of the word
Yoga itself, which comes from "yuj" which means
"to join," to bring together the aspects of yourself
that were never divided in the first place. The Yoga
Sutras of Patanjali is a primary source of learning the
practices of Yoga Meditation. The finer points of Yoga
Meditation are described and taught face-to-face, as it is an
oral tradition. Hopefully, the many articles on SwamiJ.com will
enhance your understanding and practicing Yoga Meditation. There
includes a succinct outline of Beginning,
Intermediate and Advanced Yoga Meditation.

In the Himalayan tradition,
Yoga Meditation is not limited to just the Yoga Sutras, but also
includes Vedanta and internal Tantra, while also acknowledging
that the practices are also contained in many other sources (See
the article, Yoga, Vedanta,
Tantra). The teachers of the Himalayan tradition may
emphasize or draw on some of these (or other) sources more or
less than others, matching the teachings with the student. Yoga
Meditation also involves the process of Kundalini
Awakening, and this is described in a series of pages on the
site.

Yoga Meditation is not a
religion, although some of the principles are contained within
the various religions. There
are articles on Mysticism
and Religion on the site, which
should give a good overview of this perspective of Yoga
Meditation.

The many articles on Yoga
Meditation are linked in the Index pages, which are at the top of this, and other
pages. You can easily access those Indexes by clicking on the
little mountain icon at the top of any page on the site.

Please enjoy your visit to the
SwamiJ.com site on Yoga Meditation of the Himalayan Tradition,
and do come back often to visit.

This site is devoted to
presenting the ancient Self-Realization path of
the Tradition of the Himalayan masters in simple, understandable and
beneficial ways, while not compromising quality or depth. The goal of
our sadhana or practices is the highest
Joy that comes from the Realization in direct experience of the
center of consciousness, the Self, the Atman or Purusha, which is
one and the same with the Absolute Reality.
This Self-Realization comes through Yoga meditation of the Yoga
Sutras, the contemplative insight of Advaita Vedanta, and the
intense devotion of Samaya Sri Vidya Tantra, the three of which
complement one another like fingers on a hand.
We employ the classical approaches of Raja, Jnana, Karma, and Bhakti
Yoga, as well as Hatha, Kriya, Kundalini, Laya, Mantra, Nada, Siddha,
and Tantra Yoga. Meditation, contemplation, mantra and prayer
finally converge into a unified force directed towards the final
stage, piercing the pearl of wisdom called bindu, leading to the
Absolute.